how to roast red peppers

Today I thought I would share with you all a quick and practical post on how to roast red peppers, because I know they’re some of you out there that may not know how to. Roasting red peppers is super easy, and roasting them brings out their natural sweetness. The roasted red peppers that you buy at the market are good, but they really don’t hold a candle to red peppers that you roast at home in your oven. You can roast a few red peppers at a time for a particular recipe, or roast a bunch to use in various recipes throughout the week. I used roasted red peppers for soups, sandwiches, pizza sauces, in omelets or scrambled eggs and as a topping for pizza. There are truly so many uses for them. Once you start roasting your own peppers you won’t go back to buying them.

how to roast red peppers:

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil – the oil is only needed if you are storing the roasted peppers and not using them in a recipe right away

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.

Wash the peppers and then cut them in half lengthwise.

Cut off the stem with a paring knife and scoop out all the seeds and membranes. I use a melon baller to scoop out the seeds and membranes.

Place the peppers cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet that has been lined with foil, use parchment paper, see my note below.

Update: I just learned this tidbit at natural chef school! Don’t use aluminum foil for cooking. Cooking your meat or veggies directly on aluminum foil leaches aluminum into your food, so it’s a big NO, NO!

Simple solution, use parchment paper instead! Roast the peppers in the pre-heated 450 degree oven for about 25 minutes; or until the skins are completely wrinkled and the peppers are charred, rotating the sheet if necessary for them to cook evenly. Below is what mine looked like after roasting for 25 minutes.

Let the peppers cool for a minute or two, and then remove them from the baking sheet and place them in a bowl.

Cover the bowl with foil or a plate, and let cool for about 30 minutes.

When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and discard them, dropping the peppers back into the bowl.

If you’re using the peppers up right away or later that night then you can just refrigerate them in a glass container with a lid till later that day.

If you’re making them ahead to use throughout the week, then put the peppers along with their juices into a glass container, pour the olive oil over the peppers, cover and refrigerate. The peppers should last for a week to two weeks. Honestly, they never make it past day 3 in my house.

Another favorite veggie that I like to roast up and make ahead is beets. Make a batch on Sunday, and you’ll have roasted beets all week to add to just about anything, as roasted beets last 5 days. Roasting beets brings out their natural sweetness, intensifies their color and the beets come out perfect, flavorful and tender every time.

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil - the oil is only needed if you are storing the roasted peppers and not using them in a recipe right away

Instructions

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.

Wash the peppers and then cut them in half lengthwise.

Cut off the stem with a paring knife and scoop out all the seeds and membranes. I used a melon baller to scoop out the seeds and membranes.

Place the peppers cut side down on a rimmed baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper.

Roast the peppers in the pre-heated 450 degree oven for about 25 minutes; or until the skins are completely wrinkled and the peppers are charred, rotating the sheet if necessary for them to cook evenly.

Let the peppers cool for a minute or two, and then remove them from the baking sheet and place them in a bowl.

Cover the bowl with foil or a plate, and let cool for about 30 minutes.

When the peppers are cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and discard them, dropping the peppers back into the bowl.

If you're using the peppers up right away or later that night then you can just refrigerate them in a glass container with a lid till later that day.

If you're making them ahead to use throughout the week, then put the peppers along with their juices into a glass container, pour the olive oil over the peppers, cover and refrigerate. The peppers should last for a week to two weeks. Honestly, they never make it past day 3 in my house.

Hi Ruthie. Parchment is awesome, but can burn easily at high temps, so I wouldn’t suggest using it on the grill. I don’t want your grill to catch on fire. I grill my veggies on one of those racks with the holes, and it works great. You could try wrapping the veggies in parchment and then wrap the whole thing in foil? That will at least give you a barrier between the foil and the veggies. Otherwise, I wouldn’t fret too much about it. It’s all about balance. 🙂

Thanks so much for the roasted red pepper recipe. I am an Italian-American gentleman who has fond memories of my grandmothers roasting these peppers by hand over an open flame on the old gas stoves. Your approach is so much easier (and less painful) and produces a wonderful result. The peppers are delicious and also bring back wonderful childhood memories of celebrating family dinners in my grandparents’ homes. Grazie Mille.

Love your blog and all your good ideas. Am about to follow your advice on the roasted peppers. You mention not using foil but your pictures all show the peppers being roasted with foil. Did you oil the foil?
Thank you!

Hi Deb! Thanks so much for your super sweet comment. SO happy to hear that you love the blog. Those pictures were taken before I discovered the “NO, NO” with foil, but to answer your question, no, I didn’t oil the foil. Just cut the peppers in half, scoop out the seeds and roast away. Super easy. The foil and parchment are just there for an easy cleanup. Feel free to use either one, whichever you have on hand works. I hope that helps 🙂

I really liked your idea of teaming up roasted bell peppers with roasted beetroot. Thank you for sharing it. Yes, you are correct. We can do so much with roasted bell peppers. They are simply amazing.
I follow a similar process and this is how I roast my bell peppers 🙂 – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEVsMGY9NNA

I tried your roasted red pepper recipe and it was easy and turned out the best peppers I’ve ever had.
I’m hooked. After being chilled they didn’t last 10 minuets. I’m making more and tripling the amount. . Thank you for posting.

Thank you Marin Mama for this easy to prepare roasted red peppers recipe! Turned out fantastic in both my attempts. Stored some in my fridge (and freezer) with my foodsaver bags for future use. Not sure how the frozen ones will work out. Any thoughts? Also enjoyed your comment about aluminum foil. Honestly never heard that before. Do you have more information on aluminum foil issues? I used parchment both times and browning on the perimeter was the extent of things. Based on your comments, I’ll try to use parchment much more often. Complements to you on very helpful information and professionally prepared recipes. Excellent photography too by the way!

Hi Todd! Awesome! I’m so happy to hear that you loved this recipe. To be honest I’m not sure how the frozen ones will work out? I honestly am the worst at freezing stuff. Every time I try to freeze something, I end up forgetting about it and it gets freezer burn, so needless to say, I don’t really use my freezer for anything except ice and ice cream 🙂

The aluminum foil thing is something I learned in natural chef school, and what I wrote is pretty much what I know. There are some people that say it doesn’t leach aluminum, but honestly, I would rather just use parchment and not take the chance. Parchment does tend to brown along the edges when heated at high temps, but I’ve never had it do anything more than brown up on the edges, and I’ve cooked pizza on parchment in a 500 degree oven. I’ve never personally had an issue with it catching on fire or anything.

If you start using parchment as much as I do, make sure to stock up when it’s on sale. I have about 10 rolls in my garage as it just went on sale last month:)

Roasted red peppers freeze beautifully! I freeze a lot every year packed in canning jars with olive oil and layered with sliced garlic and fresh oregano. I was dreading the work a bit this year though, so I went online to look for an easier way. I usually roast them whole under the broiler- it is time intensive and finicky to clean out all those seeds once they are done. I’m so glad I found your post! I love the idea of cleaning out the seeds before roasting! Thank you.

I’ve cooked with parchment paper at 500 degrees (when cooking a pizza) before and use it all of the time at 450 degrees and I’ve never had a problem, but if you don’t want to take that risk, I totally understand 🙂

I just love roasted red peppers on just about everything. I used to buy them in a jar and then one day I happened to have an extra pepper and decided to try roasting it. I found your recipe and gave it a try. The absolute best peppers! What I like to do is freeze them individually in plastic snack bags. Thanks for sharing this great recipe.

Freezing! What a great idea. I am often guilty of making too much of something and end by wasting it when it gets pushed to the back of the fridge. Thanks!
btw, you can put the peppers in a blender and use them as a great pasta sauce. Yum. Add a few black olives as garnish and some roasted garlic paste on the side for a super-yum!

Hey Jackie great post! We make these all the time., mostly on stove-top or outside grill. Only in the winter do I do them in the oven, but any way you roast them – they are fabulous! AND, I LOVE the soup, pizza and Panini recipes too!

Hey! Thanks for the tips. I never even thought to cut the peppers and scoop out the seeds and membranes before roasting them. I normally roast them whole, turning them half way through. Cutting them first seems so much easier! I also like to make a big batch and add some olive oil and capers. Then I just enjoy them on everything during the week : )

Great tutorial, girl! I love roasted red peppers and your pics and instructions are great. And the soup, pizza, and sandwich looks so awesome! Hope you’re having a great week. Did I tell you I started my new job (I might have told you like 3 times but my brain, haha!). It’s so busy but I am really liking it. I am working more hours than I initially thought I would earlier this year, but it’s great. It does keep me away from blogging more, but I still plan on posting twice a week and visiting my favorite blogging buddies when I can! Have a great week! xoxo, Sharon

Congratulations on the new job girl! It’s probably good that you’re busy with the job now that Jake in off to college, that way you’re not having to be home missing him 🙂 I just took another photography lesson with my gal Denise and she taught me how to go in manual mode and it has made a difference. I was taking photos in semi-manual mode before, and she finally told me to experiment and play in manual, and I tell you it makes a difference because now my photos are really colorful and crisp. It takes more time though, so I will shoot in manual when I can. Have a great week yourself girl and I look forward to your next post 🙂 xoxo, Jackie

okay i tried to leave a comment earlier but nothing happened. I went on and on about the peppers and how beautiful the pictures were and how you need to come stay a few days and teach me photography. I rambled for a while really but now i forgot all I was saying so I;ll just end with AMAZING!

This is a really great tutorial on roasting red peppers, I really don’t do it enough and your recipes just inspired me to get roasting! Your pictures are gorgeous as well, those peppers look perfect and delicious. I’ve never though to do a big batch and keep them in olive oil…usually I just roast them if I need them for a recipe. I’ll be using this tip!

[…] Cookup Tips: Make this during your Cookup and add zing to your meals for weeks! It’s great on the çevapçiçi, bunless burgers, grilled/roasted chicken, and fish. The original recipe calls for grilling the peppers, but you can roast them in the oven. […]

[…] Cookup Tips: Make this during your Cookup and add zing to your meals for weeks! It’s great on the çevapçiçi, bunless burgers, grilled/roasted chicken, and fish. The original recipe calls for grilling the peppers, but you can roast them in the oven. […]

[…] Cookup Tips: Make this during your Cookup and add zing to your meals for weeks! It’s great on the çevapçiçi, eggs, bunless burgers, grilled/roasted chicken, and fish. The original recipe calls for grilling the peppers, but you can roast them in the oven. […]

[…] Cookup Tips: Make this during your Cookup and add zing to your meals for weeks! It’s great on the çevapçiçi, bunless burgers, grilled/roasted chicken, and fish. The original recipe calls for grilling the peppers, but you can roast them in the oven. […]